By Dave Lahr: In tonight’s ESPN boxing card with Henry Lundy vs. Omri Lowther, ESPN boxing analyst and trainer Teddy Atlas said that former WBC heavyweight champion Samuel Peter (34-3, 27 KO’s) has improved “Mentally, physically and technically” in the past five years since his narrow 12 round decision loss to Wladimir Klitschko in 2005. Atlas, a great trainer and person with a great eye for spotting talent, obviously hasn’t missed the great strides that the 29-year-old Peter has made in the past five years since his loss to Wladimir.

Peter has lost weight and has won four straight fights going into his title bout against IBF/WBO heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko (54-3, 48 KO’s) on September 11th at the Commerzbnk-Arena, in Frankfurt, Germany. Against the much more inexperienced Peter from five years ago, Wladimir barely escaped with a win in a fight that he was knocked down on three separate occasions.

Wladimir says he going to knock Peter out this time, but I think the one that will be knocked will be Wladimir. If the Ukrainian comes out looking to slug with Peter, it’s going to leave Wladimir vulnerable to Peter’s left hook and straight right hand. I don’t know that Wladimir can take that kind of punishment without going down for the count. Atlas is right about Peter. He has improved immensely since the first fight with Wladimir years ago.

Peter has only been beaten twice since then, once against Vitali Klitschko and the other time coming from a fight where Peter ballooned up in weight o 265 and lost a narrow 10 round decision to Eddie Chambers last year in March. Peter has since taken off all the weight and came in at a slender 237 for his last fight against Nagy Aguilera in March 2010.